This invention relates to an ordering method and apparatus for broadcast radio programs used by a person in motion.
Many people spend significant amounts of time traveling on a regular basis. Commuters using automobiles and mass transport fill the streets and transportation depots of many metropolitan areas several times a day for many hours. Others using bicycles and other wheeled vehicles are seen not only at rush hours, but also at other times throughout the week and on holidays. Still others prefer to long distance running and walking. All of these people have the opportunity to purchase radio receivers which enable them to enjoy broadcast radio programs of a wide variety, including entertainment such as music, dramatic productions, comedies, interviews, story telling sessions, as well as news and other factual radio programs including investment shows as well as advertisements and/or commercials.
FIG. 1 depicts typical prior art vehicular radio receivers and cellular telephones. The basic receiver 10 of today often possesses an indicator 2 visually presenting some status information, such as whether the FM receiver is active, and if so, its tuner frequency. There is often a door 4 permitting loading and unloading of audio recording media, such as cassette tapes or CD""s. Other alternatives include downloaded audio files on nonvolatile memory components. There is usually an array of push buttons 6, which may be arranged in a variety of configurations, which may or may not form a regular pattern. Sometimes there are dials 8. This basic receiver 10 is usually able to receive both AM and FM broadcasts as well as often play recorded material such as cassette tapes or CDs. Audio output is often achieved in automobiles using speakers 12 and 14 coupled to the receiver 10 by wires 16 and 18, respectively.
Other kinds of commuters and travelers usually cannot afford the space of separately detached speakers. Another solution includes a headset 20 including left and right speakers 22 and 24 sometimes with all the electronics for broadcast radio reception being resident in the headset 20, sometimes with an antenna 30. Volume and tuning controls 26 are often mounted on the earphone-speaker sections such as 22. Batteries 28 are often mounted in the headset 20 as shown. A further progression includes an addition of microphone 34 attached by a mount 32 to the headset. Still further refinements include cabling 40 to a unit 42, which is often mounted on a belt.
This belt-mounted unit 42 often contains the active electronic components of the basic receiver 10 discussed above. Belt-mounted unit 42 often further contains an indicator 44 visually presenting some status information, a door 46 permitting loading and unloading of audio recording media and an array of push buttons 48. Such units 42 usually receive both AM and FM broadcasts as well as often play recorded material such as cassette tapes or CDs.
Some performing artists use versions of devices resembling these units 20-40-42 in place of hand held microphones and headsets. In such circumstances, the units act as transceivers, similar to cellular telephones, although with higher fidelity than standard cellular telephones. Additionally, cellular telephones 50 possessing a microphone 52 and earphone 54, a push button array 56 and sometimes an antenna 58 have become common throughout much of the world.
FIG. 2 depicts a simplified block diagram of a typical, prior art broadcast radio receiver. FM antenna 100 is coupled 102 to FM Tuner 104. FM Tuner 104 is coupled 106 to FM Intermediate Frequency Processor (IF) 108, from which the stereo audio signals 110 are presented to Analog Multiplexer/Switch 150. AM antenna 120 is coupled 122 to AM Tuner 124. AM Tuner 124 presents the audio signal 126 to Analog Multiplexer/Switch 150. Tape drive 140 is coupled 142 to Tape Preamp 144. Tape Preamp 144 presents the stereo audio signals 146 to Analog Multiplexer/Switch 150.
Analog Multiplexer/Switch 150 is usually manually controlled to select from a collection of inputs such as discussed above. It generates one or more audio signals 162 which are presented to Tone and Volume Control 160, which generates audio signals 166 which are presented to one or more power amplifiers 164. Power amplifiers 164 generate one or more audio signals presented 170 to Audio Speaker System 168. The Audio Speaker System 168 involves one or more speakers, which may reside in a headset, rigidly mounted on the sides of an enclosure such as a boom box, or distributed some distance from each other, as in an automobile. Often the mechanism of presentation 170 to the audio speaker system is through a wire-based physical transport layer, but in certain situations, it may be through a wireless physical transport layer. These systems have been a staple of the consumer electronics market for a quarter of a century, remaining virtually unchanged in that time. However, there are some frustrations associated with such systems and the above mentioned cellular telephones.
There is a subsidiary FM signal protocol known as RDS in the United States (and often referred to as RDBS in Europe), which has been adopted and deployed in a number of radio markets within the United States. RDS specifies a sub-band within the channel bandwidth of a standard FM broadcast station, which does not interfere with the audio sub-band of the FM transmission. The sub-band is currently used to broadcast digital information such as standard identification information of the standard broadcast station. From certain perspectives, this sub-band can be viewed as a sub-carrier used for additional analog and/or digital information.
FIG. 3 depicts an exemplary prior art mobile computer 200 capable of being installed in an automobile. Computer 200 typically is designed to mount on or near the dashboard of an automobile, but could conceptually be mounted on the handle bars of a bicycle. Assembly 202-204-206 acts as a selection device similar in some ways to a mouse or joy stick. Push plate 204, when depressed away from its center, selects a region such as 206. Region 202 in certain situations contains a number of designations useful in selecting specific common options. Display 210 portrays the state of the computer, providing the main user output. Buttons 208, 212, 214 and 216 provide a further array of user tactile inputs.
Systems such as this have recently come onto the market here in the United States. Many of these systems run handheld computer operating systems and often feature menu driven control systems further accessing one or more nonvolatile memory systems, such as CDs, disk drives or nonvolatile semiconductor memories. However, even with such new systems, there are some frustrations associated with this kind of device and the above mentioned radio receivers and cellular telephones.
Consider the situation where there is an interest in buying a copy of the radio program either being heard or having just been heard. How is this to be done? Today one faces an inherently frustrating situation. One approach is to somehow note what was played. One might call some distributor on the telephone to order the radio program. This is often at least distracting, if not dangerous, for motorists, whose life and health, as well as the lives and health of those around them, depends upon them staying focused on driving. For other most people in motion, simultaneously dealing with a cellular telephone and a broadcast radio receiver would be quite inconvenient, if not again distracting and potentially dangerous.
One might wait to visit a store selling such merchandise. This requires that somehow one remember what was played and who performed it at the least. In almost all the situations described above, this is again inconvenient, distracting and potentially dangerous.
An alternative would be to note the radio program, channel and broadcast time and use this information to order the radio program. Such a system has been recently granted a patent (U.S. Pat. No. 5,539,635). Characteristic of such systems is the following description of the user""s actions to order a radio program taken from the Summary of the Invention (column 2, lines 18-21). xe2x80x9cA customer uses her telephone to call into the system and gives the date, time, and broadcaster of when she heard each requested program broadcasted.xe2x80x9d This would again be inconvenient, distracting and in many circumstances for people in motion, dangerous.
An additional problem confronts the user in motion: financial information disclosure. Cellular telephones can often be overheard electronically. In mass transports, people in the vicinity of a user may well overhear critical identifying information such as credit card or subscriber numbers. Similar situations often occur for individuals on bicycles and on foot.
What is needed is a method of ordering radio programs which is convenient, extremely easy to perform while in motion and simultaneously capable of being secure. What is also needed is a class of radio devices supporting such methods of ordering. What is also needed is a method of controlling such radio devices so users may order radio programs in the manners discussed hereinafter.
The present invention answers all of these needs. The method of use presents an extremely efficient manner of ordering a radio program occurring at approximately the time presented, minimizing the need to remember any details. The method is embodied in a range of tactile and voice controls which people in motion need to have. Security options include voice signatures, button sequences and fingerprint identification. User feedback is embodied in both audio and visual display formats.
The radio device supports an IF signal source containing essential information on the radio program, an embedded controller, user interface as well as a radio transceiver by which the ordering transaction is carried out. The IF signal source may be digital or analog. The embedded controller contains a writeable nonvolatile memory supporting the control program and security signatures. The user interface supports push buttons, audio input and output to the user, as well as visual output to the user and a fingerprint scanner. The radio transceiver may be embodied as a cellular telephone or bidirectional pager.
The method of controlling the radio supports the basic actions of placing an order, querying the ordering system for additional information, initializing a user""s identifying signature, initializing a session by identifying a user, blocking access to ordering if the user is not identified, and in certain embodiments, calling the police. In certain embodiments, the user""s identifying signature may include one or more of button sequences, voice signature and fingerprint.